A few weeks ago I shared a look at our current entryway. I talked about our plans to remove our coat closet and create a new built-in with better storage. I’m still working through the design ideas I have for our entryway but I wanted to share one of the spaces connected to it, the second-floor hallway. Since these two spaces are connected, it makes sense to consider this space when remodeling the downstairs. The design direction we take with the entryway will have an effect on what we do upstairs or vice versa.
Second floor hallway
A look at it’s current state
The Before
The stairs to our second-floor are located in our entryway. As you come in through the front door, they are pretty much right in front of you. At the top of the stairs is a small landing. On the right, there is a doorway to one of our 4 bedrooms. Make a left, head up two final stairs, and you are in the second-floor hallway.
The hallway upstairs is not that big. On top of that, the walls are broken up with 6 doorways leading to bedrooms, our second-floor main bathroom, and a linen closet. And, if that’s not enough the ceiling has a lot going on as well. There are two light fixtures, a smoke and carbon monoxide detector, and It’s divided in half by a large, obtrusive, attic fan. It’s not the prettiest thing to look at and it’s a bit antiquated. It’s a HUGE help though when we start to transition into the warmer seasons.
Updates and changes we’ve made
The overall space is not horrible and we’ve made a few updates since moving in 10 years ago.
One of the biggest improvements we made right away before we even moved in was to remove the moss green carpet runner that ran up the stairs. We painted the walls snowy pines by Behr to make the hallway feel open and bright. We also swapped out the base moulding a few years ago and added a larger, more substantial one that matches the moulding we did on the first floor.
Mike bought me a small chandelier as one of my gifts when we first moved in. We replaced the light fixture at the top of the stairs with it.
Artwork has been added along the way to bring a bit of personality and to help the space feel more finished.
The linen closet
Our linen closet at the top of the stairs also got a little love when we first moved in. The interior was wiped down and a fresh coat of white paint added to the walls. We removed the few existing shelves that were in the space and added new wire shelving to create more usable storage.
Mike also swapped out the louvered door for one with an arch detail to match our new bathroom door. We found the door at a local warehouse that specializes in discount building supplies.
Goals for the upstairs hallway
The goals I have for this transition space include adding some character, finishing half-completed projects, and creating a cohesive look.
We’ve added some character to the hallway by updating the base moulding but I would like to inject a little more. As with the entryway, I’m debating between adding some moulding to the walls, using wallpaper, or some combination of both.
We have a few projects that we’ve started and failed to complete for one reason or another. Life and work got in the way, we implemented the function but let the form go, or the idea didn’t pan out and needs rethinking.
One example of this is the trim. The base we used is primed white and after we installed it we never got around to painting it.
Another example is the linen closet door. When remodeling the bathroom, we swapped out the door for one we found at Building 9 which is the warehouse building supply store I mentioned above. Their inventory is always rotating depending on what they can get their hands on. When we did the bathroom remodel, we were able to get a door for the bathroom and for the hallway linen closet. However, we weren’t able to get matching doors to replace the others for the bedrooms and their respective closets.
We will most likely need to select another door style. One that is kept in stock and readily available. I wanted to transform our existing doors by painting them and adding mouldings. The bathroom door was damaged though during the reno which prompted us to find replacements in the first place.
Currently, the new door we have for the linen closet isn’t up. It’s a bit heavy and breaks or gets stuck on the track.
Hallway before + refresh
While there is some work to be done, our upstairs hallways feels close to completion. Overall, it isn’t that bad and just needs a little work to complete it.
It’s one of those low hanging projects that we can tackle and knock off our to-do list pretty quickly. It’s also a smaller project without any major updates to hold it up. Since we’ve been home and I’ve been laid off, I’ve been looking for small projects like this to tackle. I think this one is next on the list!
On Friday I’m going to share with you some of the thoughts I have for the design and the current debate that keeps going through my head.
Do you have any low hanging, small projects you can tackle around the house?
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